# How to Adjust Inventory Quantity and Value in QuickBooks Desktop > Use Adjust Quantity/Value on Hand in QuickBooks Desktop to fix stock after a count, damage or loss, and post the difference to an adjustment account. - URL: https://logistify.ai/guides/quickbooks-desktop/adjust-inventory-quantity-value/ - Section: QuickBooks Desktop Guides, Inventory - Applies to: QuickBooks Desktop Enterprise, Premier, Pro - Steps checked against: Intuit's QuickBooks Desktop help articles, updated August 2026 - Updated: 2026-10-18 **Short answer:** Open Vendors > Inventory Activities > Adjust Quantity/Value on Hand and enter each item's new quantity, new value or both. If your menu bar has an Inventory menu, the same command is there. Choose Quantity, Total Value, or Quantity and Total Value as the Adjustment Type, then pick your adjustment account. QuickBooks posts the difference to that account. It works this way in QuickBooks Desktop Pro, Premier and Enterprise. ## Before you start - Decide what you're changing. Use a quantity adjustment when stock changes for any reason besides buying or selling. Breakage and a count that comes up short or over are typical. - Use a value adjustment when the stock is worth less or more than QuickBooks shows, for example after spoilage or a seasonal drop in demand. Intuit suggests asking your accountant first. - Have the count date and the counted quantity for each item. Reports > Inventory > Physical Inventory Worksheet gives you a list to count against. - Adjusting an assembly changes the finished goods only, not its components. To unbuild an assembly and return its parts to stock, use Intuit's unbuild steps instead. ## Step 1: Set up an inventory adjustment account 1. Go to Company > Chart of Accounts. 2. Open the Account menu and select New. 3. From Other Account Types, choose Cost of Goods Sold. 4. Name the account Inventory Adjustments, then select Save and Close. You only do this once. Keeping adjustments in their own account makes them easy to find on the Profit and Loss. ## Step 2: Enter the adjustment 1. Go to Vendors > Inventory Activities > Adjust Quantity/Value on Hand. If your menu bar has an Inventory menu, use Inventory > Adjust Quantity/Value on Hand. 2. In Adjustment Type, choose Quantity, Total Value, or Quantity and Total Value. 3. Set the Adjustment Date to the day of the count or the damage. 4. In Adjustment Account, choose the account from Step 1. 5. Enter a Reference No. You can also add a customer or job, or a class. 6. Select Find & Select Items, check the items to adjust, then select Add Selected Items. 7. For each item, enter the New Quantity, the New Value, or both. 8. Check the Qty Difference column. It should be negative for a loss and positive for a gain. 9. Select Save & Close. ## Step 3: Check the result 1. Go to Reports > Inventory. 2. Run Inventory Valuation Summary to check value, or Inventory Stock Status by Item to check quantity. 3. Find the items you adjusted and confirm the new numbers. ## Adjusting with Advanced Inventory in Enterprise - If you track multiple sites, choose the Inventory Site on the adjustment so QuickBooks records the change at that site. - If serial or lot numbers are on, choose Serial Number or Lot Number as the Adjustment Type to assign numbers to stock you already have. - You can make serial or lot numbers mandatory on adjustments. QuickBooks then won't save one without them. - Inventory > Cycle Count lets you count a group of items by site and bin instead of the whole warehouse. You can add up to 5,000 lines at a time, and QuickBooks splits them into cycle counts of 200 lines each. - When a cycle count finds differences, select Batch Actions > Adjust Quantity/Value on Hand on the cycle count dashboard. QuickBooks opens an adjustment with every difference filled in. ## If the numbers still look wrong - Quantity went negative: Intuit says adjusting today's count back to positive isn't enough. Each point where stock went negative has to be fixed, often by dating the purchase before the sale. - To find negative stock, run Reports > Inventory > Inventory Valuation Detail with Dates set to All. Enterprise 15.0 and later also has a Negative Item Listing report, which shows current negatives only. - To stop it happening, Enterprise has a preference in Items & Inventory: Don't allow negative inventory quantities. - Moving from one item per warehouse to inventory sites: use Quantity and Total Value adjustments to put the stock on the one item you keep. Counts that are off after a delivery often trace back to receiving. See [How to receive inventory against a purchase order](https://logistify.ai/guides/quickbooks-desktop/receive-inventory-against-purchase-order/), and [How to track inventory by site](https://logistify.ai/guides/quickbooks-desktop/track-inventory-by-site/) for the warehouse cleanup. ## Where QuickBooks Desktop leaves the work to you - Someone has to count, compare the count with QuickBooks and key in each new number. - An adjustment records the difference, not the cause. Theft, damage, a receiving mistake and a sale on the wrong item all look the same. - Value adjustments change cost of goods sold and the balance sheet, so your accountant should see them. - Short or over shipments become count differences when nobody checks deliveries against the purchase order. ## How Logistify helps before the count Logistify doesn't count stock or post adjustments. The [Procurement Service](https://logistify.ai/agents/procurement/) follows up with suppliers on open purchase orders, captures confirmed dates and quantities, and routes exceptions such as a changed quantity to your team. Receiving then has a confirmed number to check each delivery against. ## Frequently Asked Questions ### What account should inventory adjustments use in QuickBooks Desktop? Intuit suggests a separate Cost of Goods Sold account named Inventory Adjustments. Ask your accountant if you want damage or shrinkage in their own accounts. ### How do I enter a physical count in QuickBooks Desktop? Open Adjust Quantity/Value on Hand, choose Quantity, and date it on the count date. Enter each counted number in New Quantity and save. ### Can I change inventory value without changing quantity? Yes, choose Total Value as the Adjustment Type and enter the New Value. Intuit recommends talking to your accountant first. ### Does Adjust Quantity/Value on Hand unbuild an assembly? No, it changes the stock of the assembly only and leaves its components alone. Intuit has separate steps to unbuild an assembly. ## Sources - [Intuit: Adjust your inventory quantity or value in QuickBooks Desktop](https://quickbooks.intuit.com/learn-support/en-us/help-article/inventory-adjustment/adjust-inventory-quantity-value-quickbooks-desktop/L8p8OoeGs_US_en_US) - [Intuit: Set up advanced inventory in QuickBooks Enterprise](https://quickbooks.intuit.com/learn-support/en-us/help-article/feature-preferences/set-advanced-inventory/L2IZIdPVM_US_en_US) - [Intuit: Use Serial or Lot Numbers and Expiration Date](https://quickbooks.intuit.com/learn-support/en-us/help-article/product-preferences/use-serial-lot-numbers/L7pICcele_US_en_US) - [Intuit: Cycle Count in Advanced Inventory](https://quickbooks.intuit.com/learn-support/en-us/help-article/inventory-management/cycle-count-advanced-inventory/L5CYYncCK_US_en_US) - [Intuit: Fix negative inventory issues in QuickBooks Desktop](https://quickbooks.intuit.com/learn-support/en-us/help-article/inventory-management/fix-negative-inventory-issues-quickbooks-desktop/L7LoLuVSD_US_en_US) - [Intuit: Track the products you manufacture](https://quickbooks.intuit.com/learn-support/en-us/help-article/set-inventory-lists/track-products-manufacture/L5pGuMiFO_US_en_US) - [Intuit: Use item categories in QuickBooks Desktop Enterprise](https://quickbooks.intuit.com/learn-support/en-us/help-article/inventory-management/inventory-categories-quickbooks-desktop-enterprise/L9P3ArO3n_US_en_US)